SOUTHERN AFRICAN INTERPROVINCIAL MATHEMATICS OLYMPIAD

The Southern African Interprovincial Mathematical Olympiad (SAIPMO) has been a regular event since 1990.  This year it will be held on the afternoon of Saturday 13 September.  Teams will gather in different centres around the country to take part. 

In 2007 the competing provinces were Boland, Gauteng South, Gauteng North, Eastern Province, Free State, KZN Coast, KZN Midlands, KZN Piranhas, North-West and Western Province.  So a "province" need not coincide with any official nine provinces of the country and neighbouring countries are also welcome to participate.

Each province enters two teams of ten: Junior (grades 8 and 9) and Senior (grades 10, 11 and 12), and may also enter B,C,D,…  teams at each level. 

The first part of the Olympiad kicks off at 2 p.m. and is a one-hour individual problem paper, consisting of 20 problems in multiple-choice format.  After a break for refreshments and a discussion of team strategy, the second part of the Olympiad takes place.  The second paper consists of ten quite difficult problems, but now the teams may work together and must submit just one set of answers. 

Papers are marked at once, and teams scores are phoned, faxed or e-mailed through to the IPMO National Organiser, Prof. Peter Dankelmann, at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.  When all scores are in, the rankings are sent back to the provinces at about 5 p.m. 

With sponsorship from the Actuarial Society of South Africa, financial support is available to all participating provinces to provide T-shirts, certificates and refreshments for their teams. 

Entry form for teams

Full details on how to take part in the Interprovincial Mathematical Olympiad may be obtained from:

             Ellie Olivier at SAMF
             Tel (012) 392 9323 or ellie@samf.ac.za